Fahrenheit 451

It's been 55 years since the publication of Ray Bradbury's dystopian novel about Guy Montag, a "fireman," a term for state-employed book burners of the future. Francois Truffaut brought the story to the silver screen in 1966 and there have been numerous efforts over the past decade to cook up a remake, with Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt among the stars who have flirted with the Montag role at different points. Writer-director Frank Darabont ("The Green Mile," "The Shawshank Redemption") is on the job now with a planned 2010 release even though his announced star, Tom Hanks, dropped out of the project in March.

It's been 55 years since the publication of Ray Bradbury's dystopian novel about Guy Montag, a "fireman," a term for state-employed book burners of the future. Francois Truffaut brought the story to the silver screen in 1966 and there have been numerous efforts over the past decade to cook up a remake, with Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt among the stars who have flirted with the Montag role at different points. Writer-director Frank Darabont ("The Green Mile," "The Shawshank Redemption") is on the job now with a planned 2010 release even though his announced star, Tom Hanks, dropped out of the project in March.